Tasha's POV:
Tessa was once more flapping her wings hard, although the flaps were closer to a backwinging or exercise flap as opposed to a take-off wingbeat. Dirk had his wings spread, but he was sunbathing under the heat lamp without any of the energy Tessa was showing.
I also knew what had triggered the change. Tessa had seen the sun rise – and once a dragonet saw it, they could feel the Morning Song. It changed us, and we could always feel the sunrise and the call of the Morning Song after that. It created a drive in us; without the Morning Song, we fell into a depression. I had one brush with that depression when Taureen had first taken me in with my broken wing.
Until that point, none of the dragonets had realized exactly what would happen if a dragonet didn't see the sun rise for an extended period of time. A few days or even a week weren't serious, but longer periods of time held a hidden danger where a lethargic depression crept in. I wasn't entirely sure if Taureen realized it, but I suspected that it hadn't slipped past his keen observation skills.
In a way, I was glad that Tessa was starting to strengthen her wings. Most youngsters made their first attempts at flight around day five, and it was already day four. Their growth rate was actually a bit ahead of the norm – likely due to the plentiful and nutritious fruit, but their walking and flight attempts were about a day behind. I wasn't overly worried, but it was something to keep an eye on and note for the future.
I had a long conversation with Drake this morning, and both of us came to the conclusion that it was because Tessa and Dirk hadn't seen the rising sun earlier. In the park, the youngsters usually saw the sunrise during their first day or two and felt the draw of the Morning Song.
The faint banging sounds from the back of the house were from Taureen completing the last of the renovations that he had been working on. The noise also distracted Tessa, who decided to get a snack from a bowl of fruit. They were mostly feeding themselves now, which was a relief for anyone who liked to sleep more than an hour at a time.
She started walking back to the nest before pausing and eyeing up her brother. I knew what was coming and simply watched in amusement. With a surprisingly coordinated leap, she pounced on her brother, who squalled his surprise and unhappiness. It immediately turned into a wrestling match that rolled around the nest.
I wasn't about to break it up while it was just play, either. It was increasing their strength, stamina, coordination, and reflexes. They were still clumsy nestlings, but they were already a far cry from bumbling hatchlings that could barely even stand on their own power. Their development wasn't going to slow down much until they were half my size, which would only take a few months. By the end of their first year, they would be almost as big as Keegan or me.
They were growing up right in front of my eyes, and they would basically be young adults by their first birthday, although it would take at least another four years before they were fully grown.
With that thought, I swooped down to join in the game for a bit of fun while they were still so small and cute.
Tessa's POV:
Mom curled her tail around her feet patiently as she asked more strange questions, "If I say New York, what do you think?"
I was confused by her question, although the hidden knowledge showed me a strange, smelly place. I replied, "Gone, like all human places are."
Dad tilted his head, also intent on this conversation. "There was a well-known fountain in one of the parks in that city, near the city hall. Do you know which one?"
His questions made no sense to me, although the hidden memories actually showed me an image of the large fountain he was referring to. I sent the image to them. "Was it in City Hall Park?" The words were strange and meant nothing to me, but they understood them perfectly.
Dad nodded slowly, although he seemed sad that I had known the answer. I scratched an itchy spot on my leg, waiting for the next strange question.
Mom asked, "Do you know what the Sydney Opera House looks like?"
I didn't, but the hidden knowledge once more gave me an image of a weird white building that appeared to have fallen on its side. I shared the image with her as I moved my scratching to the edge of my wing.
She tilted her head as she asked, "Do you find it strange that you know what these places looked like, even though you have never seen them?"
The hidden knowledge was helpful. Didn't everyone have it? It always explained everything for me, even if I couldn't quite understand what it was showing me. I shared the feelings with Mom since I didn't have words to explain my feelings.
Mom and Dad both looked over as Taureen entered the room. The other big green one's name was Aeria, but she was in the backyard.
Taureen held up a small object. "Mind if I try oiling them? It will probably relieve their itching."
Mom nodded, and I could tell that she was talking to Taureen even though I could still hear her. "Go ahead. It's because they are growing so fast, but some youngsters will scratch until they bleed, and their claws are getting hard enough to possibly damage their scales."
Taureen reached over and picked me up. After my trip this morning, I was nervous, but not scared. He put me on his knee before picking up the small glass bottle.
His deep voice was calm and reassuring. "Relax, Tessa. I'm going to make the itching go away."
I watched him intently, ready to learn how he was going to accomplish this. I didn't like it when I was itchy. He put something on his fingers before gently spreading my wing and rubbing the slippery liquid on. It felt good. Even better than sunbathing.
Wherever he rubbed, all of the itchiness disappeared. My head jerked up as I realized that I had almost fallen asleep. It was really hard to stay awake for some reason. The hidden knowledge once more helped me understand. He was spreading oil on my scales with a massage.
The 'massage' was wonderful. I wanted to do this every day. All of my muscles relaxed as he carefully spread the oil. My head soon rested on my hands as I tried to stay awake.
Tasha's POV:
It was kind of amusing to watch the small red nestling practically melting with her first oiling. She was already half-asleep, but I was simply glad that her skin and scales would no longer be itching. Those in the park just had to endure it, with some trying mud baths or rubbing oily seeds over the itchy areas. None of those methods had a chance of comparing to the special oil that Taureen was using.
Taureen was being extraordinarily gentle since Tessa was so tiny. She looked bigger with her wings spread, but she was smaller than the size of Taureen's hand if she curled up.
There was no doubt that she was thoroughly enjoying the oiling and massage, although she was having problems remaining awake. It was a universal problem for all dragonets... I knew firsthand that the oiling and massage were extremely relaxing.
My tail twitched idly as I lay under the heat lamp. Keegan sat beside me, also watching Tessa get her first oiling.
His quiet voice entered my mind. "I'm the only dragonet who saw that fountain. None of the others have that blood memory, so apparently general knowledge can be inherited from the parents. Not that it is exactly a surprise since we knew this from the other hatchlings."
My response was equally as quiet, and for his ears alone, "It seems to be only general knowledge; buildings, locations, and such. When I asked about people I had known, she was clueless."
"She seems to have access to all of the Blood Memories we have, as well as what we learned. Just like all of the other hatchlings."
I nodded slightly since words weren't really needed. We both had the general Blood Memories that all of the other dragonets had, but it looked like the newer generations were getting a bit more. She knew what a bicycle was, but she didn't see any real difference between the sport variety and a basic street bicycle – mostly because neither Keegan nor I knew. Yet, one of the wild fledglings could list the top manufacturers simply because his father had been a complete bicycle fanatic.
It was always general knowledge that they picked up, not personal memories. Tessa and Dirk could recognize several types of fruit that my Blood Memories hadn't originally recognized because Taureen had given me their names. The Blood Memories were a strange enigma – a helpful one, but not something that we really understood.
A soft snore made me grin – Tessa had lost the battle to stay awake. Her brother was beside me, watching in sleepy confusion as he sunbathed under the heat lamp beside me. He would learn shortly, and then Taureen would likely have two nestlings constantly pestering him for an oiling and massage.
I rested my head on my hands, hoping that there might be enough oil left in that vial afterward for me to have another oiling. Not that it was really a concern; Taureen undoubtedly had more vials hidden in one of the back storage rooms.
Dirk tilted his head and creeled at me, hungry, but too lazy to get up and walk the ten steps to the food bowl. With a faint snort, I spread my wing and lightly pinned him into the sand with it. As I halfway expected, he started struggling with a startled squawk.
I wasn't using much pressure so he didn't have much difficulty squirming out from under my wing. My head was still on my hands, and he walked over to bump my nose with his. I quickly lifted my head while reaching out with my hands to grab his arms and drag him closer.
Rolling onto my side, I pulled him against my chest while wrapping my arms and wings around him. The playful parody of a hug promptly triggered an energy rush in Dirk, sparking a wrestling match. I gently mouthed his wing as he squawked, squeaked, and created an entire repertoire of bird-like noises as he tried to wiggle his way free.
Aeria walked in the back door and commented, "My goodness, what are you doing to that poor thing?"
I grinned at her, pretending I didn't notice that Dirk had escaped my grasp. "Making sure he wasn't bored."
She chuckled faintly while shaking her head in humor. Without looking directly at him, I flicked my tail over to snag Dirk's back ankle and drag him back to me. He squeaked in protest, but I didn't pay it any heed. If he wasn't about to try to build up his strength on his own or with his sister, then I was fully prepared to 'assist'.